Video: Kumar: It’s all political says FSP

5 November 2015 02:39 pm

Granting Sri Lankan citizenship to Kumar Gunaratnam was not a question of law, but a political consideration, Frontline Social Party (FSP) Politburo member Pubudu Jagoda said today.

“Granting of citizenship is therefore not a matter for legal institutions such as courts of law, but rather for the executive arms such as the Cabinet and the subject minister,” he said.

“Even the Kegalle Magistrate’s Court and the Supreme Court have stated that this was not a legal problem but a political problem.  Everyone is trying to create a strange image of Kumar Gunaratnam. He is a Sri Lankan by birth. Everyone is trying to treat him as foreign national, who overstayed his visa,” Mr. Jagoda said.

He said the crisis emerged due to different views of groups other than those in the government.

While addressing the media the New Left Front Leader Dr. Wickramabahu Karunaratne said the problem was related to immigration and emigration.

“A problem had occurred on possessing several passports by the former Minister Wimal Weerawansa. But no passport was recovered from Kumar Gunaratnam.

“Both the cases are related to passports. But Wimal Weerawansa’s issue was solved in a descent manner and he had been released in all cases. The government is trying to treat similar problems in different ways.

Both Wimal Weerawansa and Kumar Gunaratnam were originally members of the Leftist Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna. While, Gunaratnam left the country during the 1988 insurrection, Wimal Weerawansa left the JVP to form his own National Freedom Front.

“It is a question of not treating someone according to liberal democratic principles by the Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe. The government had made a political issue out of Kumar Gunaratnam’s issue.

“If Wimal Weerawansa can possess several passports, Kumar Gunaratnam could be issued with five passports,” Dr. Karunaratne quipped. (Chaturanga Pradeeep)




Pix by Waruna Wanniarachchi